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The Baptist Pietist CLARION
Vol. 2, No. 1
In essentials unity • in non-essentials diversity • in everything charity
July 2003
Published by the Committed Pastors and Lay Leaders Dedicated to Preserving Pietism, Evangelism, and Civility in the BGC.
Edited by G. William Carlson, Professor of History and Political Science at Bethel College; Ron Saari, Senior Pastor at Central Baptist Church.
Contents
1 E O. Nilsson, A Baptist Heretic
Richard Turnwall
A Clarion Call for Baptist Pietism
Ron Saari & G. William Carlson
2 "Baptist" is not a Dirty Word
Jim Spicklemier
3 Former Bethel Seminary Dean
Defines Baptist Distinctives
4 Why I'm a Baptist | Virgil Olson
5 Why I'm a Baptist | John Anderson
6 Baptist Pietist Committments
8 The Anatomy of Adversity
Terri Hanson
11 Celebrating the Life of a Faithful
Baptist Saint | G. William Carlson
12 A Mother Who Took the Time to
Pray | G. W Carlson
F. O. Nilsson, A Baptist Heretic
Address given at the BGC History Center Dinner, October 24,2002, at the Elim Baptist Church
in Minneapolis, Minn.
Richard Turnwall, former Baptist General
Conference pastor and Executive Minister of
the Minnesota Baptist Conference I Both in Sweden and
Minnesota Frederik Olaus
Nilsson was called a heretic.
In Sweden it went so far that
he was charged, tried, convicted and sentenced to exile
in trials that culminated in
the reluctant guilty verdict I
by King Oscar I. The King
was deeply aware of the
embarrassment Nilsson's
banishment would rouse.
By 1850 religious liberty was
politically correct all across
Europe, but not in Sweden.
There the sentiment for liberty was strong,
but the Church-controlled Rikstag refused
to accede. The King would have much pre-
F. O. Nilsson • Founder of the
Baptist work in Sweden and
pioneer in America.
ferred to let Nilsson go free, but the standing
law was plain and uncompromising. He was
obliged to sustain the verdicts
of the lower courts. Nilsson's
humble demeanor and
straightforward interpretation
of the Scriptures had been very
impressive. But he was critical
of the State Church teaching on
baptism, on state-church relationships and on Christian life
style. Such denunciations were
heretical. On July 4, 1851, the
Nilssons, F. O. and Ulrika, tearfully bade farewell to their spiritual brothers and sisters. They
sailed to Copenhagen where, in
exile, he became the pastor of a
small Baptist congregation.
By 1855 the Nilssons were in Minnesota.
He had led a group of Swedish Baptists up
continued on p. 6
A Clarion Call for Baptist Pietism: Claiming our Heritage
G. William Carlson, Professor of History and Political Science, Bethel College &
Ron Saari, Senior Pastor of Central Baptist
Church in St. Paul, Minn. | This is the third
issue of The Baptist Pietist Clarion. The first
two issues explored the following questions:
What is Pietism and how has it impacted the
BGC Baptist tradition? Who is John Alexis
Edgren and what were his commitments to
Baptist pietism? How did the BGC Affirmation of Faith develop in 1951 and why is it
not a creed? How does the Baptist pietist
heritage ensure support of the civil rights
movement? How was God at work in the
history of Bethel College and Seminary?
Why does our Baptist pietist commitment
to religious liberty encourage support for the
work of the Baptist Joint Committee? All the
essays reflect our belief that everything we
do communicates Christ as Our Lord and
Saviour and the Scripture as Our Guide for
belief and conduct.
This issue of The Baptist Pietist Clarion focuses on another important question: "What
is a Baptist?" The lead article reflects on the
life of F. O. Nilsson, the founder of several
Conference churches in Minnesota, notably
Scandia and Houston. The address was given
by Richard Turnwall at the fall meeting 2002 of
the BGC History Center dinner at Elim Baptist
Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Nilsson,
because of his Baptist convictions, was forced
to leave Sweden in 1851 when the Swedish
Court of Appeal condemned Nilsson to "perpetual banishment from the kingdom."
What were these convictions? How
were they articulated in the United States?
Are they still valued? The three essays by Dr.
John Anderson, Dr. Virgil Olson and Dr. Jim
Spickelmier reflect on the meaning of these
principles for today's church, especially
a church that seems to want to minimize
continued on p. 2

The Baptist Pietist CLARION
Vol. 2, No. 1
In essentials unity • in non-essentials diversity • in everything charity
July 2003
Published by the Committed Pastors and Lay Leaders Dedicated to Preserving Pietism, Evangelism, and Civility in the BGC.
Edited by G. William Carlson, Professor of History and Political Science at Bethel College; Ron Saari, Senior Pastor at Central Baptist Church.
Contents
1 E O. Nilsson, A Baptist Heretic
Richard Turnwall
A Clarion Call for Baptist Pietism
Ron Saari & G. William Carlson
2 "Baptist" is not a Dirty Word
Jim Spicklemier
3 Former Bethel Seminary Dean
Defines Baptist Distinctives
4 Why I'm a Baptist | Virgil Olson
5 Why I'm a Baptist | John Anderson
6 Baptist Pietist Committments
8 The Anatomy of Adversity
Terri Hanson
11 Celebrating the Life of a Faithful
Baptist Saint | G. William Carlson
12 A Mother Who Took the Time to
Pray | G. W Carlson
F. O. Nilsson, A Baptist Heretic
Address given at the BGC History Center Dinner, October 24,2002, at the Elim Baptist Church
in Minneapolis, Minn.
Richard Turnwall, former Baptist General
Conference pastor and Executive Minister of
the Minnesota Baptist Conference I Both in Sweden and
Minnesota Frederik Olaus
Nilsson was called a heretic.
In Sweden it went so far that
he was charged, tried, convicted and sentenced to exile
in trials that culminated in
the reluctant guilty verdict I
by King Oscar I. The King
was deeply aware of the
embarrassment Nilsson's
banishment would rouse.
By 1850 religious liberty was
politically correct all across
Europe, but not in Sweden.
There the sentiment for liberty was strong,
but the Church-controlled Rikstag refused
to accede. The King would have much pre-
F. O. Nilsson • Founder of the
Baptist work in Sweden and
pioneer in America.
ferred to let Nilsson go free, but the standing
law was plain and uncompromising. He was
obliged to sustain the verdicts
of the lower courts. Nilsson's
humble demeanor and
straightforward interpretation
of the Scriptures had been very
impressive. But he was critical
of the State Church teaching on
baptism, on state-church relationships and on Christian life
style. Such denunciations were
heretical. On July 4, 1851, the
Nilssons, F. O. and Ulrika, tearfully bade farewell to their spiritual brothers and sisters. They
sailed to Copenhagen where, in
exile, he became the pastor of a
small Baptist congregation.
By 1855 the Nilssons were in Minnesota.
He had led a group of Swedish Baptists up
continued on p. 6
A Clarion Call for Baptist Pietism: Claiming our Heritage
G. William Carlson, Professor of History and Political Science, Bethel College &
Ron Saari, Senior Pastor of Central Baptist
Church in St. Paul, Minn. | This is the third
issue of The Baptist Pietist Clarion. The first
two issues explored the following questions:
What is Pietism and how has it impacted the
BGC Baptist tradition? Who is John Alexis
Edgren and what were his commitments to
Baptist pietism? How did the BGC Affirmation of Faith develop in 1951 and why is it
not a creed? How does the Baptist pietist
heritage ensure support of the civil rights
movement? How was God at work in the
history of Bethel College and Seminary?
Why does our Baptist pietist commitment
to religious liberty encourage support for the
work of the Baptist Joint Committee? All the
essays reflect our belief that everything we
do communicates Christ as Our Lord and
Saviour and the Scripture as Our Guide for
belief and conduct.
This issue of The Baptist Pietist Clarion focuses on another important question: "What
is a Baptist?" The lead article reflects on the
life of F. O. Nilsson, the founder of several
Conference churches in Minnesota, notably
Scandia and Houston. The address was given
by Richard Turnwall at the fall meeting 2002 of
the BGC History Center dinner at Elim Baptist
Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Nilsson,
because of his Baptist convictions, was forced
to leave Sweden in 1851 when the Swedish
Court of Appeal condemned Nilsson to "perpetual banishment from the kingdom."
What were these convictions? How
were they articulated in the United States?
Are they still valued? The three essays by Dr.
John Anderson, Dr. Virgil Olson and Dr. Jim
Spickelmier reflect on the meaning of these
principles for today's church, especially
a church that seems to want to minimize
continued on p. 2